1. Field of the Invention.
The present invention generally relates to vehicle maintenance tools and more particularly to those tools adapted as aids for mounting wheels upon vehicles.
2. Prior Art.
The present invention specifically addresses a problem which is inherent in vehicle maintenance. The prior art exhibits numerous devices which are used to vertically lift the vehicle to provide for general maintenance of the vehicle, and in particular, to lift the vehicle for the purpose of mounting a vehicle wheel. The need for the present invention has arisen as a result of the increased use of oversized vehicle tires and wheels. Although the prior art exhibits equipment specifically adapted for the purpose of lifting a vehicle, the equipment does not address the specific problem created by the combined weight of the tires and wheels now in commercial use.
The weight of a typical tire and wheel in common use can exceed 75 pounds. The most common devices exhibited by the prior art for lifting a wheel to the height of the vehicle axle are conventional pneumatic or mechanical lifts having a vertically moveable surface. These devices totally fail to address the problem inherent in mounting vehicle tires and wheels upon the vehicle. Vehicle wheels include a central aperture to be aligned with the hub of the vehicle axle and a plurality of apertures adapted for receiving mounting bolts. Since the number of mounting bolts may vary from vehicle to vehicle, it is clear that, irrespective of vertical height, a wheel must be capable of being rotated about its axis in order to engage the mounting bolts. Although pneumatic and mechanical lifts are typical of the devices disclosed in the prior art, neither they nor other vertical lifting devices provide means for properly positioning a vehicle wheel to facilitate engagement between the wheel and the vehicle axle and mounting bolts.
The present invention substantially resolves the problems inherent in those devices disclosed by the prior art. The present invention concurrently provides the means to longitudinally position the vehicle wheel relative to the vehicle axle, vertically raise the height of the wheel for engaging the hub of the vehicle axle and rotatably position the wheel so that it may be coupled to the mounting bolts. Once the wheel is placed upon the present invention apparatus, the wheel can be mounted without the need to exert any undue manual force to either raise or to rotate the vehicle wheel to a proper position.